The Dragon Cafe is the name of the small Chinese restaurant that Su-Jen's father established in Canada in the 1950s. Su-Jen and her mother had remained in China while Hing-Yun has gone ahead to earn money for their new life. Although his wife loved the "old China," she feared the Communists and wanted to leave.

Su-Jen was only six years old when she and her mother came to Canada, and she did not remember her father. She soon came to love him and his partner Uncle Wat, but her mother was very unhappy.

Su-Jen learned English quickly and worked to fit in when she started school. She was drawn to the lo fen, the white culture, but struggled to remain the obedient child her parents expected.

She tells this "coming-of-age story" from the perspective of her adult years when she more fully understands some of the events of her childhood. She was helpful in the diner and at home. The principal of her school suggested that she have a western name so that her classmates wouldn't tease her, and she became "Annie" (after Annie Oakley. The principal must have had a strange sense of humor.)

Lai-Jing, her mother, continued to be unhappy. Her husband was much older than she, and she longed for a big city and activity. She watched over Su-Jen, and cautioned her that water was her danger sign and that she must be careful around water. Although Su-Jen dismissed the superstition as she got older, she still had an uneasy feeling about it. Her first friend was the daughter of a baker, and Su-Jen loved visiting in their home.

"As a young child I never really thought about my parents' lives in Irvine, how small their world must have seemed, never extending beyond the Dragon Cafe." Le-Kung was her father's son by his first wife. It was exciting when he came to visit, but it was many years before he came to live with them.

Meanwhile, Su-Jen became best friends with Charlotte, an independent, artistic classmate. They ventured farther than Su-Jen dared to when by herself. Su-Jen, always quiet and obedient, finally got in trouble when defending Charlotte against a sadistic teacher. Worse trouble was to follow, both at home and with Charlotte.

Judy Fong Bates has also written a successful short-story collection. Midnight in the Dragon Cafe is interesting because it deals with a different culture and because Bates creates appealing characters. It is available at the Mary Willis Library.